Pebble has released Text Reply for iOS. The new wearable feature is still in its beta stage but its introduction makes Pebble smartwatches the first smartwatch offering, outside the Apple Watch, to offer voice and text replies for iPhone users.
Beginning Nov. 23, Pebble wearable users in the United States will be able to reply to SMS messages or iMessages using their voice, canned messages and emojis through Pebble Time, Pebble Time Round and Pebble Time Steel. However, there's a catch. The beta feature can only be tried out by AT&T subscribers with an active contract.
Apple will not permit competing smartwatch brands to respond to texts using the Messages app, so Pebble looked for a workaround by working with network carriers, in this case, AT&T.
"Text Reply on iOS sends messages directly via your carrier, replies do not appear in the Messages app," Pebble explains.
"In response to feedback from the Pebble community requesting this feature, we have worked hard to overcome iOS limitations by partnering with service providers, enabling us to bring this functionality to our iOS users," the wearable developer adds.
To use the service, qualified subscribers must first register their mobile numbers using the iOS Pebble Time app following the steps below.
1. Launch the iOS Pebble Time app.
2. Tap the three lines found in the top left of the My Pebble page.
3. Proceed to the main menu and choose Settings.
4. Qualified devices will have an Actionable Notifications section. There should be a Text Replies option that has the Setup beside it. Tap Setup.
5. Once the Setup guide is displayed, tap the continue button that is found at the bottom of the screen.
6. The next step varies depending on the connection used. For cellular data, select Allow to proceed with verification. For Wi-Fi, the next displayed window should contain the network carrier details.
7. Tap the Verify Now button.
8. After sending the automatically generated message, the user will receive a message saying the feature has been activated.
Pebble says it is working with other network carriers to also make the feature available through them.
